Computers have become highly integrated in the workforce, in the home, in mobile devices, and many other places. Computers can process massive amounts of information quickly and efficiently. Software applications designed to run on computer systems allow users to perform a wide variety of functions including business applications, schoolwork, entertainment and more. Software applications are often designed to perform specific tasks, such as word processor applications for drafting documents, or email programs for sending, receiving and organizing email.
In some cases, specialized software applications may be used to write source code for other software applications. These applications are typically referred to as integrated development environments or IDEs. IDEs usually include a debugger which allows the user to check the source code for errors. Using a debugger, a developer can step through his or her software program line by line to determine what is happening at each step. In many cases, debuggers are able to provide information about the program's different variables. However, once the code has been compiled and optimized, many of the program's variables have changed. The developer then has to analyze the binary code him-or herself to determine the variables' values.